Self-Portrait with Fur-Trimmed Robe
Dürer paints himself straight from the front, as Christ used to be depicted. It is a bold claim: the artist is not a craftsman but a creative genius.
Look at the hands and the gleaming fur – and at the date 1500 and the monogram AD.
Albrecht Dürer was the first artist in Europe to make a long series of self-portraits. He drew himself at the age of thirteen. In 1493 and 1498 he painted self-portraits in which he presents himself as an elegant, well-dressed young man. In 1500, at the age of twenty-eight, he painted this portrait, which is considered the most radical of them. He was the son of a goldsmith in Nuremberg and learned precision in detail early on.
Dürer shows himself straight from the front, against a dark background. His long, curly hair falls over his shoulders. He wears a brown coat with a fur collar, and his right hand touches the fur. The face is serious, and his gaze meets the viewer’s. The picture is strictly symmetrical, almost like a geometric construction. The coat is expensive and shows that he is a respected burgher, not a simple craftsman.
On the left are the date 1500 and Dürer’s monogram, a large A with a D beneath it. On the right is a Latin inscription. It says roughly that Albrecht Dürer of Nuremberg portrayed himself in his own colours at the age of twenty-eight.
At this time the frontal pose was reserved for images of Christ. Portraits of ordinary people were almost always shown in profile or three-quarter view. The picture has therefore often been interpreted as a comparison between the artist and God as creator. A common explanation is that Dürer wanted to show that the artist’s creative power is a gift from God. Others see the picture as an expression of a pious wish to imitate Christ. Dürer was deeply religious, and both interpretations may apply at once.
The painting is done in oil on wood. Dürer painted the hair and fur with extremely fine brushstrokes, strand by strand. The palette is subdued, in brown and golden tones. The light falls softly from the left and models the face. The picture is about 67 by 49 centimetres and painted on limewood.
The year 1500 carried a special charge. Many expected great upheavals or even the end of the world at the turn of the century. A few years earlier Dürer had published his famous woodcut series on the Book of Revelation. How much this influenced the portrait is, however, uncertain. In any case, the round number makes the picture a kind of milestone in his life.
The portrait came to Nuremberg town hall and was sold to Bavaria in 1805. Today it hangs in the Alte Pinakothek in Munich. Dürer travelled to Italy and became the one who brought the ideas of the Renaissance to the German lands. His self-image as a learned, self-aware artist has made the painting a symbol of the artist’s new role in society. The picture has been quoted by many later artists who wanted to explore their own role and identity in the self-portrait.